Have you ever climbed up mountains? If so, what do you do when you reach the top? Most people open their arms, close their eyes, and take a deep breath. That is the special thing about clean and fresh air. You feel like taking a pause and inhaling fresh air. Over the past year, we have faced several waves of coronavirus. These days, we have been warned about another wave of this virus. Therefore, the importance of clean air has been increasing day by day. In this article, we are going to find out why air quality is important when it comes to our indoor environment.

The impact of pollution on your indoor air

No matter where you go, you will have to face the consequences of poor quality. Even if you are alone in your home, you will still be prone to polluted air. Every year, more than 1 million people lose their life because of air pollution.

According to some reports, India is among the top 10 countries in the world with the worst air quality. The effect of polluted air is more evident as people spend over 90% of their time inside their homes. Another research study found that residents are at a greater risk of covid-19.

As a matter of fact, indoor air pollution has become an international concern. We can say that pollution levels inside and in closed spaces are up to five times higher. Since most pollutants are not visible to the naked eye, you may not be able to aware of the dangers of dirty air.

Indoor air pollutants may be generated by common household items, such as cleaning agents, cooking fuel, furniture polish, pet dander, and paint. Apart from this, domestic appliances such as refrigerators and heaters may also be the common source.

Since homes are not airtight, air pollutants can easily get in. For example, smog, smoke, mold spores, and dust can get into your house through your windows or doors. Air conditioners can be used to cool down your rooms. But the downside is that they can also boost the movement of pollutants across your house.

What can you do to purify your indoor air?

Basically, air purifiers are simple devices that receive dirty air and put it out after passing it through powerful filters. Nowadays, you can choose from hundreds of air purification units available in the market. They are based on a wide range of technologies. They are available in different sizes to cover rooms of different sizes.

Nowadays, most types of air purifiers depend on HEPA technology. Initially, this technology was introduced in the 40s in order to capture pollutants from the air. Although these filters have been used for the filtration of particulate matter, they may not be that effective when it comes to eliminating volatile organic compounds.

Therefore, if you are worried about your health, we suggest that you invest in a type of device that comes with a HEPA filter. With these units, filtering your indoor air will be a piece of cake. Therefore, you can count on these devices to and ensure clean air inside your house.

When we think of home we are filled with a feeling of calm and serenity, and when we are styling it, we think of using nothing but the best material for it. So, why should kitchen be left behind, the kitchen where a lot of time is spent doing the most useful activity in the world: “cooking”.

There are different stones that can be selected, like the naturally occurring granite, quartzite, marble, sandstone and man-made stones like quartz etc. Each stone has its own pros and cons and are selected by different people as beauty lies in the eye of the beholder.

So what are the factors that affect the choice of stones to be used?

1. Cost: The cost is often one of the key determiners in choosing a stone for the kitchen. The cost of the stone depends on various factors like demand for the stone, the color, the cut, thickness etc, the more difficult to find the stone in nature, the more expensive it becomes.

2. Appearance: The natural stones don’t have a uniform color and design, this may be seen as an aberration or a thing of beauty. While the manmade stones are more uniform in appearance. Natural stones are available only in the colors they occur in nature but to the man-made or engineered stones pigments can be added to lend color to the stone. It is also because of their unique uneven pattern that natural stones are found to be more expensive.

3. Durability and care: Most of the naturally occurring stones are porous in nature, thus requiring more care and maintenance. They need to be sealed after every 2 years. Without proper seal the stains can penetrate into the stone and will lead to staining. The man made stones are not porous and will therefore not absorb liquids and stain requiring less care and are more long lasting than the natural stones. All natural stones require a little more TLC than the engineered stones.

4. Availability- The availability is also a factor when choosing a counter stone for the kitchen, the stone which is locally available will certainly cost less than the stone which may have to be transported over a long distance.

5. Installation- The installations costs differ from stone to stone. For example, granite slabs are difficult to install because of sheer size, whereas the granite tiles being smaller in size can be easily manipulated into installing anywhere.

6. Hardness- The engineered stone counters are very hard, so they don’t crack as easily as granite or slate. It is also resistant to heat, and would therefore not get scorched by it.